“Top Ten” Gender Gap Flips in 2017

From 1880 until relatively recently, there was a sizeable gap between the percentage of baby boys given a name in the top ten (higher) and the percentage of baby girls given a name in the top ten (lower).

But the gender gap began narrowing in the late 20th century. It continued eroding in the early 21st century. It was down to just one hundredth of a percent in 2016. And finally, last year, the tables turned: more girls than boys got a top ten name for the very first time.

I was clued into this by sociologist Tristan Bridges, who wrote the blog post “Gender Gap in Top Ten Baby Names” right after the 2017 data was released in mid-May.

What do think the percentages will look like in the coming years? What are your predictions?